Advertising: Set yourself apart from the rest
By Sue Richards
February 23, 2004
Advertising your organization's events and fundraising drives can be a costly
undertaking that garners little return unless you invest some time determining
how and where you want to spend your money.
My goal with advertising is to spend as little as possible to gain the buyer's
undivided focus, while maximizing the size of my audience and the length of
time that I have their attention. I try to set myself apart from the plethora
of advertisers by not using the conventional vehicles for advertising. This
takes a bit more effort and a lot more imagination. However, the results can
be very satisfying.
Recently, I produced a four-woman play in conjunction with the launch of my
third Breast of Canada Calendar. Live theatre is always a challenge to promote
and Guelph has a small population base that supports such artistic endeavors
so I knew I needed to make my advertising pitch eye-catching and compelling.
I was also walking a fine line. The play was titled "The Strong Breast Revolution"
and the four women performed without tops on. Given that my overall message
was to raise awareness about breast health, I wanted to be certain that I
didn't stray into any form of objectification or sexualization of women's
bodies.
I decided that a poster would be the most cost efficient way for me to get
people's attention. I had two audiences that I was trying to attract: the
university, and the cultural creative who primarily live in the downtown core.
Since posters are routinely used in both locations as sources of information,
I was certain that my poster would command the attention I was looking for.
I used a slightly larger size (11x17) from the standard posters I saw around
town. My designer used a bold, black text reminiscent of a "Wanted" poster
from the Wild West. We dedicated half of the page to a black and white professional
photo of the four actresses in a very amusing pose, covering each other's
breasts. The image conveyed a playfulness and gentle humour as well as an
intelligence and great confidence.
I printed 600 copies, put up 500 and included 100 in my snail mail media package.
The poster got immediate attention and generated much chat that furthered
my advertising effort. Media sources, some new to my project, came on board
with pre-show stories and theatre reviews. The show and calendar launch served
a combined audience of 800 and effectively brought the release of the new
calendar to the attention of thousands of others. All this cost about $200.
Plus, I know that my posters are currently plastered on students' walls through
campus residences. With my web site address and phone number prominently displayed,
these posters have a shelf life far beyond the actual event, yet are helpful
in serving to advertise the calendar for years to come.
A few years ago, I tried another approach that continues to serve me well.
While sitting in my kitchen one day, I realized what a powerful advertising
surface my own refrigerator was. There were coupons, upcoming events, and
restaurant takeout menus secured by various interesting magnets. So, I decided
to see if I could get information about a community arts project I was launching,
called Art Jam, on the fridges of 1,000 Guelph residents.
The logo for Art Jam is very literal - a piece of toast with Art Jam spelled
out in a red jam-like font. I priced magnets and decided on a perfect square
with a white background. I placed the logo in the middle with my phone number
and Guelph, ON running up one side. The total bill for 1,000 magnets came
to about $500.
As part of the project, each adult participant was invited to do a finger
painting based on a given topic. We called this "fridge art" and encouraged
everyone to take their "fridge art" masterpieces home at the end of a session
with an Art Jam magnet so that they could hang their work. We provided the
same fun encouragement for visiting schools, supplying teachers with dozens
of magnets for their classrooms.
Our effort paid off in spades. The fridge art artists were proud to do as
instructed, giving the Art Jam project major prominence on fridges throughout
the city. Because of the charming nature of the work, and the clear contact
information on the magnet, house guests, visitors, roommates, and other family
members were quick to sign up for their own Art Jam experience. The project
far exceeded our expectations of community involvement, all thanks to some
well placed magnets that continue to grace refrigerators all over town.
When you can find a way to separate yourself from the larger stream of advertisers
and get your own, undivided attention, you will find that less can be much,
much more. So look at what everyone else is doing and try to find a way to
do something different. Your imagination will save you thousands of dollars
and gain you thousands of customers and patrons.
Sue Richards is a Guelph-based, social entrepreneur and cultural animator who is busy promoting her creative agenda to anyone who wants to have fun and be involved.
